As an army veteran and doctor, Lieutenant Governor Northam has seen the destruction that firearms cause when they fall into the wrong hands. Throughout his distinguished tenure in public service, Lieutenant Governor Northam has been a champion for responsible gun violence prevention policies, and has made his long-standing commitment to the issue a hallmark of his gubernatorial campaign.

“Virginia’s next governor will have an important role in combatting gun violence and advancing solutions to make communities safer and we believe Ralph Northam is exceptionally suited to take on that challenge. Lieutenant Governor Northam understands the importance of protecting the rights of law-abiding Virginians and keeping guns out of the hands of violent felons, domestic abusers, and other dangerous people. Throughout his life, as a veteran, doctor and public servant, Lieutenant Governor Northam has fought tirelessly to make Virginia a better, safer place to live.

“Every year, over 30,000 Americans are killed by a gun. Virginia has not been immune to this deadly crisis: somebody is killed with a gun in Virginia every 10 hours. Americans for Responsible Solutions PAC is proud to endorse Lieutenant Governor Northam, a leader who has the courage to stand up to the gun lobby and push for bipartisan, commonsense laws, like closing the loopholes in Virginia’s background check system, that will help prevent senseless gun tragedies and make Virginia families safer.”

Dr. Ralph Northam:

“I’m proud to receive the endorsement of Americans for Responsible Solutions and work alongside them to fight for commonsense protections from gun violence in the commonwealth. As a senator and as lieutenant governor, I’ve dedicated myself to commonsense gun safety reform, casting the tie-breaking vote to close the gun show loophole and keep the ‘one-handgun-a-month’ policy in place. My life experience have led me to where we are now: I have a F rating from the NRA and I’m proud of it. As governor, I’ll continue fighting to make commonsense protections a reality and reduce gun violence as a result. With ARS, I’ll stand up to the pressure of the gun lobby to put the safety of Virginians ahead of special interests.”

Where Lieutenant Governor Ralph Northam has demonstrated a clear commitment to protecting the rights and responsibilities of all Virginians, Ed Gillespie has shown that he is outside the mainstream. In 2014, the National Rifle Association gave Ed Gillespie an A-rating, boasting that he “opposes the so-called Obama-Bloomberg “universal” background check system.” In the last gubernatorial debate, Ed Gillespie made it clear that he would allow individuals to openly carry firearms into state office buildings and oppose commonsense gun safety measures, like universal background checks, that the overwhelming majority of Virginians support.